Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

Hi guys,

My wife's father had an old boat sitting up for years behind my mother-in-law's house and i was considering doing a very slow ( more time than money ) rebuild/restoration of the old thing. It's in bad, bad shape! I was wanting to get an idea of what it might look like fixed up and maybe some details of the hull design and was hoping someone could maybe point me in the right direction of the make/model of this boat, unfortunately there are no decals. The only thing i know is that it used to be a "gilnet" boat. The transom has a customized bulkhead & net compartment. I would like to fix it up mainly for the sake of fixing it up ... but you never know it could turn into a work boat ( crabbing or shrimping ). Anyways, any help making out what this old fix-er-upper would be greatly appreciated.

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Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

Pictures don't work,...................

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

Sorry .... Kinda new to this forum stuff. Thanks for the heads up. Hope these work!

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

Welcome to iBoats. It's nothing I can identify strait out but have you tried running the registration number LA 8891 BT through your State Dept. of Registration or Dept. of Environmental Police or whoever handles Registrations in your jurisdiction to determine the manufacturer?

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

You were not kidding about "bad bad shape",......

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

It should have a HULL id on the rear left back back of the hull, however it looks like someone has taken a saws all to it. What are your plans for this?

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

Hmm...
Sitting in a field for many many years
No trailer
No motor
No interior
No glass
No salvageable parts & pieces
In serious disrepair...

If it's got paperwork to establish ownership that can be legally transferred (if her father has passed, & it's still in his name, some states make it VERY hard to transfer ownership), and it's free, you have some way to haul it out of that field, some place to work on it, and you WANT a serious project, well yeah, it's a free boat....

BUT <<-- may not be nearly a large enough but to indicate what difficulties you face...

The years sitting in the field off the trailer have likely not been kind to the hull itself. Esp if you get any wet weather: regular freezing, which seems unlikely near 'shrimping' waters, or tons of rain.........

It will require lots of work, a fair amount of money, lots of dedication, and be incrediably taxing work.

To save a family boat is noble, willingness to attempt a project this large is also admirable. If it's the one boat you can't stand to be without, then yeah, drag it home. We'll tag along, hassle & heckle ya regularly, and help in any way we can.

If you can move it to somewhere you can work on it, it may best be used as an instructional aid to help you learn how a boat is made, how to inspect one for suspected problems & hidden trouble, and how to dismantle & demo a project boat for resto. It may only teach you that this boat, or this type of work is not something you really want to attempt. That purpose alone may be more valuable then the rest... {~insert the tin head propaganda here~} :tinfoil3:

Unless something in 1 of those pix is stands out to someone who's owned 1 or seen 1 before, it may be difficult to correctly ID......

Check for delaminating fiberglass & wet lumber any & every where you can get your hands.... A small screw driver or awl to poke & probe every where you can.

Read thru the threads listed in Don's helpful how to's: How To's and Other Great Information


Welcome to iboats, and best of luck if you decide to tackle this project....

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

Hi guys thanks for replying!

There are several reasons I want to tackle this boat. One, it's something I've always wanted to do. Two, I used to shrimp with my brother-in-law before he passed from cancer a few years back. We wasn't real close or anything, not trying to build any illusions but he was my brother in all sense of the word. Since then we've lost my wife's mother and her other brother and it just seems like a way to give something back to my wife's family that has come to mean a very lot to me. I also have my eye on one of my great-nephews, he's all boy if you know what I mean and I would like for him to "help" me with this, all of my nieces and nephews of course were affected by my brother-in-law and other family passing but I don't know there's something about this nephew that just makes me wanna help if I can and thought this boat project might be just the thing!

Ok, enough on the gushy stuff lol. The boat had been on a trailer up until last year when one of my nephews decided they needed the trailer and took it off and left the boat where it is now. We're on the coast of Louisiana and don't get many freezes, maybe a frost or two in a year and that's about it. If I took on this project I would completely gut the boat and rebuild the interior from scratch. I'm a decent woodworker and worked a summer when I was younger in a fiberglass shop so I know what I'm in for. My long term plans for the boat would be to build it in the style os the commercial fishing boats down here with a cabin that has an open back and just use it for pleasure fishing the local lakes and bayous, but it could very well eventually be a work boat.

I haven't done a serious inspection yet but I do at least have to get it off of where it is now the strip of land it is on has been sold. So, I thought I would go ahead and do the demo on the inside which would allow me to get a better idea of the shape the hull is in ... I'll have to do this anyway. Then if it's too bad I'll just scrap it and look elsewhere for a project boat.

I'm gonna try running the hull numbers through DMV to get some info on the boat. Will let you guys know what I find.

Thanks again for the replies.

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

It sounds like you have reasonable expectations and have a good idea what your up against,....

Good luck and keep us filled in, And lot's and Lot's of pictures,...........We love pictures!!!

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

If you keep an open mind... and an open pocket book... you can do anything with a boat like that. I just wanted to make sure you were not trying to get this on the water for 500 bucks

Re: Help determining the make/model of a potential restoration project

Sentimental value and wanting a project are two good reasons to do a project boat... However, this one looks like it may be too far gone...

Sure, anything is possible (one guy on here even cut a boat in half and lengthened it), but you are looking at a significant repair bill to get this rig safe and/or serviceable (particulalry as a working rig). Its not just the big ticket and more obvious items (trailer, fiberglass materials, resin, wood, trailer, steering, motor, etc...), but the little things will eat you death cash wise as well (gel coat/paint, wiring, hardware, windshield, seats, brightware, gauges, vinyl coverings, batteries, horn, vhf/gps, gas tank(s), fuel lines, vent hoses, new livewells, new pumps, new lights, etc...)... Not to mention the 90,000 trips you will make to [insert big box store of choice] for sandpaper, blades, rollers, acetone, brushes, gloves, tyvek suits, respirator/cartidges, etc....]...

Not to be a wet blanket, but sometimes discretion is the better part of valor...

If you do decide to go forward, then we will quit beating you up and try and cheer you on and help you out as much as possible.

peace,
~Pmc